Sunday, August 2, 2009

Important Reasons to Get Early Help If Your Child May Have Autism

Although a parent might not have a diagnosis early on, it is imperative to start intervention early if you suspect your child may have autism. As any parent knows children acquire huge amounts of information while they are the youngest. From crawling, to walking, to talking, to toilet training those first three to five years are packed and when a child seems to learn the fastest. Because of this ability to learn fast it is important to start with therapies as young as possible. In this manner it is easier to build on strengths. One of the ways a child with any disability will learn to cope is to strengthen the skills that they find easy. Those early strengths can be used to motivate children as well. In the case of poor behaviors it is easier to learn acceptable behaviors first of course. Learning how to teach a child with a different way of understanding is important. Nest it is easier to stop unwanted behaviors and teach replacement behaviors before they become ingrained. Unfortunately many people only look for help after everyone seems to be locked into a system of unproductive behaviors, whether the behavior is the parent’s or the child’s. Equipment or tools are also easier to develop while a child is young. Teaching a child to use a communication board or communication cards while younger is critical. In the process the young child is taught to make choices. Later when or if a system of communication is needed it will be easier and quicker to go to the next step. One of the surprising reasons that you will want to get help if you child might have autism is to help yourself. Parents of children with asd need to be able to think outside the box. Whether responding to odd behaviors or figuring out a different way to teach a concept, we need to be able to think in a different way. Finally the last reason to get help is to develop the systems that will support you and your child early. Some of these systems will take years to fully develop so getting an early start no matter what the diagnosis is critical.

My Blog List

About Me

I have five adult children. I also have five grandchildren and one on the way. Two of my children have Autism Spectrum Disorders. Two of my grandchildren have disabilities. I split my time between loving God and my family, autism and disability work, and selling Avon.